Perspective taking, defined as the ability to take on the visual, cognitive, and affective perspective of others, is considered a highly adaptive skill, vital for the child's social, intellectual, and emotional development. This article provides a critical analysis of scientific psychological literature from 1995 to the present on the main methods…

This paper compares four selected social-emotional learning (SEL) curricula that have empirical support for preschool students (Preschools PATHS, Incredible Years, Al's Pals, and Preschool RULER). First, meta-analytic studies of SEL programs in schools and research on emotional intelligence (EI) of preschool children are reviewed as a background…

We investigated the role of sociocultural (between-groups) and individual (within-group) factors on the development of preschoolers' resource-allocation preferences. We tested claims of the "joint impact hypothesis" of social values development that social-emotional understanding skills would predict the transition from simpler…

This study examined emotion understanding and reconciliation in 47 (24 girls) 4-6-year-old preschool children. Participants first completed emotion recognition tasks and then answered questions regarding reconciliation tendencies and affective perspective-taking in a series of overt and relational aggressive conflict scenarios. Children's teachers…

Developmental precursors to children's early understanding of gratitude were examined. A diverse group of 263 children was tested for emotion and mental state knowledge at ages 3 and 4, and their understanding of gratitude was measured at age 5. Children varied widely in their understanding of gratitude, but most understood some aspects of…

This study evaluated the efficacy of preschool Promoting Alternative Thinking Strategies (PATHS), an early years curriculum designed to improve children's social and emotional competence, and reduce problem behaviour. Fifty-seven children aged three to four years took part in the study over one academic year. The control group (Group 1) received…

Child development theorists, researchers, and educators have long known that play is one of children's most valuable resources, vital to their social, emotional, and cognitive growth. Through play children make sense of the world around them and work through new experiences, ideas, and feelings. But in recent years, a host of social forces and…

A 13-month study of preschoolers' conversations with friends examined development of understanding of mind and emotion and mental-state talk. Findings indicated significant and related improvements in theory-of-mind task performance and affective perspective-taking. There were qualitative and quantitative changes in mental-state references in…

The relationship between empathic role-taking abilities and empathic behaviors observed in both naturalistic and experimental settings was examined in 14 children between the ages of 53 and 65 months. Children were observed at the McGill Daycare Centre twice a week for 8 weeks, totalling approximately 30 hours. Event sampling was used to record…

The ability to empathize, or experience the emotions of another individual, has frequently been suggested as an important factor in the child's moral development and expression of prosocial behaviors. The present investigation sought to explore the relationship between the young child's empathy (as assessed by the Feshbach and Roe measure) and the…